(CNN) – Wisconsin will hold its first recall election of state senators Tuesday with Democratic primaries in six districts Republicans currently hold, kicking off a series of elections that are the result of the state battle over collective bargaining rights that shut down the state legislature for weeks in February and March.

The recall elections scheduled in July and August stem from public outcry over a Wisconsin measure passed in the state legislature with the support of Republican Gov. Scott Walker that curbed collective bargaining rights of most state employees in an attempt to close a $137 million budget shortfall.FULL POST

(CNN) - A conservative Republican businessman with strong support from many tea party activists is hoping to pull an upset Tuesday in a special election for an open congressional seat long held by Democrats.

Voters in California's 36th Congressional District, which covers much of Los Angeles County's South Bay area, head to the polls to replace former Rep. Jane Harman, who stepped down earlier this year.FULL POST

(CNN) – When pressed to choose, Bill Maher said he would rather Michele Bachmann become president in 2012 than Sarah Palin.

The liberal comedian and political commentator said he would pick the Minnesota congresswoman because "She's not someone who just sits there and reads the prayers on her Blackberry like Sarah Palin."FULL POST

Greenville, South Carolina (CNN) – The family of the late former South Carolina Gov. Carroll Campbell, a towering figure in the state’s political lore, will endorse former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman’s Republican presidential bid on Tuesday.

Huntsman had already secured the backing of Campbell’s son Mike, a former candidate for lieutenant governor who chaired Mike Huckabee’s South Carolina primary campaign in 2008.FULL POST

CNN: GOP, Democrats to huddle once more on cutting federal debt, deficits
Top Democrats and Republicans are scheduled to meet again Tuesday after the two sides could not reach a breakthrough during a White House meeting to address the nation's mounting federal deficits and debt, a congressional aide said. …Ahead of the session set for 3:45 p.m. Tuesday, congressional participants were asked to bring ideas for closing the roughly $600 billion gap between negotiated spending cuts and further savings that Republicans say are necessary for a debt ceiling deal, Democratic sources said.

Los Angeles Times: Boehner-Cantor rivalry affecting debt talks
A long-simmering rivalry between the top two Republicans in the House has tumbled into the open, with far-reaching implications for deficit-reduction negotiations with the White House. …In private talks with the White House, Boehner favored a large package as part of pragmatic political deal-making. But Cantor, speaking for staunch conservatives in Congress, is opposed.